This is a zine dedicated to black metal written by a follower of the left hand path, This zine has been around in a different format for a while and I have decided to make an edition for www.blogger.com, for more information email occultblackmetalzine@yahoo.com, new albums as well as classic albums will be reviewed on here as long as their good quality black metal,

Monday, March 30, 2015

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

In 2014, we released our latest album “Ülestõus”. We are already working on new material.

2.A year back you had released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

This is definitely our most well-tuned and professional album but still like “classical” Tharaphita. While “Raev” (1998) was our first, raw and primitive but still melodic black-metal album, which is still the favourite of many of our fans, I really enjoyed making the last album the most. I had a clear vision on how each instrument should sound. “Primeval Force” (2005) was an experiment in English and sounded different from the previous stuff. Tumedate tunnete kütkeis (2001) is our most heavy metal influenced album, we will re-release it next year. With “Iidsetel sünkjatel radadel” (2007) we came closer to our “roots” again. Listen to our albums and decide yourself!

3.This was the first full length to be released in 7 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time frame?

We had important changes in our personal lives which gave us a new wave of inspiration. Me and the drummer both had our first children, the guitar player with his wife had their second child. The previous bass player moved to Finland. The band has always been a hobby for us and we all have other jobs for living. We live in different places in Estonia and did not have enough time to rehearse. During the time, I wrote new songs but had no time to devote for the band. Tharaphita's next album will hopefully be released in 2016.

4.Originally the band started out as a solo project, what was the decision behind hiring a full line line up?

Friends wanted to play in my band. They never asked for money. The band has been a hobby to us and the Estonian scene is very small. A band from Estonia can become professional musicians but this requires touring a lot and investing much time in promotion. It is very hard if some band members need to go to work every day.

5.Originally the band was known as 'Ancestral Damnation', what as the decision behind the name change?

According to a legend, Tharaphita was the Estonian war and thunder god - the mightiest of all gods. Ancient Estonians called Tharaphita for help while fighting against the Christian crusaders.

6.With the band name and lyrics the music is very heavily rooted in Estonian Paganism, can you tell us a little bit more about how you got interested in the Paganism of your own country?

I truly respect nature and the history of my homeland has always inspired me. I think that leaders within many organized religions are too much dedicated to gaining power over people using manipulations and fear. For me, being a pagan means honesty and respect to other living beings. I am also very interested in the Scandinavian mythology. During centuries, many events were described and much knowledge forwarded through mythological concepts. It is possible that legends of fire gods are related to falling meteorites seen by people, who could not explain these events scientifically and started to worship the fire in the sky. Others believe that the legends were born due to ancient beliefs about aliens visiting Earth. It is believed that Tharaphita was a modification of the story of Thor, as well as a god also worshipped far in the East. The vikings travelled a lot and cultural influences of both the West and the East were noticeable. The vikings established contacts along the Eastern Way, bargaining with goods and slaves. Of course, I would never say that everything done by our ancestors was admirable.

7.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

We had a really nice gig in Ukraine last summer. The festival place was high in the Carpathian mountains. In our homeland, we've played at the Hard Rock Laager festival, which is the most important Estonian metal event with about 1500 visitors.

8.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

We have a few gigs booked in Estonia. The next one will take place in my hometown Rakvere at 24.04.2015. Actually, we are very interested in playing outside Estonia and we will try to arrange some concerts soon.

9.The new album was released on Vaarang Records, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

I wanted to maintain the copyright of the album „Ülestõus” and I also wanted to know how it feels to be in metal business. Vaarang Records belongs to me and my wife. We will put effort in promoting this album. Perhaps in the future we will start releasing other bands, too.

10. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of pagan and black metal?

We have received mostly positive feedback to both „Ülestõus” (2014) and „Iidsetel Sünkjatel Radadel” (2007). We really hope to gather more attention worldwide now. As hobby musicians, we have not had enough time for promotion work before now. This time we will really try to spread our music worldwide.

11.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part off?

The guitar player Benton has a side project PWA and the bass player Brutalis plays in Ainus Seadus. Neither of these are metal but I am sure that these projects help to inspire these guys while creating music for Tharaphita.

12.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

You´ll never know what the future shall bring. I just need to feel inspired and enjoy what I do. It is sure that Tharaphita will always be metal and probably it won´t get softer in the near future.

13.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

My great favourites are still Bathory, Burzum, Celtic Frost, Root and the good old heavy from Accept, UDO, Wasp and Manowar. There are many more bands that have inspired me for years. I guess that the favourites of my youth will always stay important to me. But from the latest discoveries for me I would mention Myrkur, Sorcerer, Myrkgrav, King of Asgaard.

14.What are some of your non musical interests?

I own a farm and I am currently studying gardening at Räpina School of Horticulture. I am also very interested in reading and watching documentaries about historical events and archeology.

15.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording of the new album?
Yes, of course. We are preparing for some live performances to support our new album that are going to take place this spring. And also we are getting ready to record our next hateful songs that have already been composed. In brief, from time to time we rehearse old material and create something new.

2. You have a new album coming out towards the end of March, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
I would describe the sound of “Zakon Zbroi” as a tragic reflection of the pain and military deaths of our Ancestors. Although it’s an album that is filled with patriotic and nature-worshipping notes, the main theme of the CD is ritual of death and “mass execution” of Belarusian Folk. As for the musical direction it’s a mixture of Pagan\Black Metal with touches of different music styles. The sound is rather raw and atmospheric but at the same time it’s quality is good. We used 4 Belarusian studios to transfer our thoughts into sound and as a result we got the sound we wanted at the stage of ideas. In my opinion in comparison with previous “Adzinota Kruka” and “Go Beyond Gist” these songs are more solid, melodic and bleak with plenty of diverse arrangements. This is the first time we didn’t use keyboards during the record at all (only in introduction, but it was specially created for us by Sever from LIHOLESIE Project as an independent track). All the additional arrangements were recorded on acoustic instruments such as violin, bagpipe, different kinds of flutes, additional authentic drumming and as for me it reinforced the dark atmosphere of the album and made it truly “alive” but not synthetic. It’s very important.

3. The lyrics on the new album cover a great amount of historical topics from your homeland, can you tell us a little bit more about the lyrics you have written for the new album?
The lyrics on the album cover only one main topic – the times of the Second World War on Belarusian territory (1941-1945). During these times approximately half of the population of Belarus was killed or sorely died in concentration camps. Many of villages were burnt alive along with their inhabitants and the country was totally destroyed after fierce battles that took place here in abundance. I tried to describe the face of war as plausible as it was in reality. And I must say that the lyric part of the album is inseparable from musical one and very meaningful for us.

4. Since 2006 there has only been 1 split and one full length, can you tell us a little bit more about the gap between releases?MASSENHINRICHTUNG is not an ordinary band and we have no “schedule” or release plan. When we have something to say – we do. In 2008 the situation became more complicated by the fact that I put the project on hold and for two years we had no joint musical activity with HresVelgr at all! Later in 2010 we were invited to play some gigs in Russia and that fact gave us enormous motivation to revive the band. We recorded songs for a split CD with RAVEN THRONE band and at the same time we began to work on “Zakon Zbroi” album. As you can see we have been working on it for almost 4 years. What are the reasons of such a long recording process? Trivially, families and work.
From the early beginning we decided to make a deeply conceptual album with a strong basis on the topic that we are really concerned. The Second World War is extremely honored in Belarus as it has touched almost every family one way or another. For dozens of times we were in stalker expeditions, visiting memorable places of war, mass graves and battlegrounds for we could inspire the real atmosphere of REAL deadly fight and express our feelings through music. It took some years but we have done it. And yes, we are stalkers in our essence.

5. I know that the band name means 'Mass Execution' in German, how does it fit in with the musical style that you play?In my opinion it fits our music well. Our songs are dedicated to war, death, natural disasters, scourges and catastrophes. Isn’t it “Mass Execution”? I think it is.
6. Originally the band started out as a solo project but has evolved into a full line up over the years, what was the decision behind going into this direction?Of course, as I told you above, I wanted to extend the line up to participate in festivals that we were invited. It was a very bad option to engage session musicians every time we played, so I decided to reorganize MASSENHINRICHTUNG into a live band with a permanent line up. I wasn’t seeking for professional musicians and proposed to my Friends and Brothers to take part in this project. Since then we are a band. However, all in all in studio I prefer to record all the instruments myself. It’s a pity (or not), but sometimes I’m a little bit tyrannical during the creative process. Moreover, I guess that the music sounds like a path to the brain of the composer mostly when the author records songs totally himself. Therefore, “Zakon Zbroi” is a musical trip to my thoughts.

7. What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
During a performance we try to create the dark and authentic Belarusian atmosphere and to suppress the listener with a squall of negative energetic. Each our performance is an ejection of malice to the ears of the audience. In the rest – we behave as a usual old-school metal band. Honestly and directly.
What concerns best gigs that we had over the years, the first things that come to my mind is Travien Fest in Minsk in 2014 and Pagan Winterstorm in Vitebsk in 2013. The atmosphere and the public were really mad and crazy that times. Also it is worth mentioning Russian mini-tour with Polish ARKONA. It was a great experience.

8.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?
Unfortunately not now. We are an underground band and don’t have any particular plans to have a long-term tour to support our new album. We shall just play some single shows in Belarus, Ukraine and in some European Countries. Maybe we’ll have something like European mini-tour but it is still a subject of discussion and planning. Time shall show.

9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your newer music by fans of pagan and black metal?To be honest, I didn’t follow the feedback on “Zakon Zbroi” on this moment. But, of course, it’s very nice to receive reviews on our e-mail, both positive and negative, but actually…. we are not 100$ banknote to be liked by everybody.

10.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the bands members are involved with?Many of them are preparing new materials for new albums. Some of bands are widely touring this spring.

11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
New material that is being prepared nowadays is rather different in comparison with “Zakon Zbroi”. It’s worth saying that it is more “old-school” and more “metallic” than previous songs. I decided to make something like a tribute to the music of the times when we were growing up. So sometimes it borders with thrash\black metal in its most aggressive and evil form. But all in all it shall be in a style of MASSENHINRICHTUNG – it comes from the heart, creates a certain authentic atmosphere and rather pushing and onslaught. Anyway, it shall be an exclusive album of experiments that shall reflect actual aspects of our outlook. Back to roots!

12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
When I was creating music for “Zakon Zbroi” I watched a lot of feature and documental films about War, so strangely enough, but the main influence came from soundtracks from these videos and from silence of Battlefields and Beds of Honor. Not from metal artists. Also I would like to thank Stogn, Narg and Sever for their enormous contribution to the sound of this album and for their musical ideas – they have done a lot for this CD.
My music preferences are wide enough. I like almost all metal and rock genres on a par with folk, classics and ambient\industrial music. If to talk about latest releases I am deeply impressed with last album of WOODS OF YPRES, latest works of ANATHEMA and KATATONIA. The first favorites for all the times that come into my mind now are BATHORY, SODOM, SLAYER and THE EXPLOITED.

13.How would you describe your views on paganism?
Hmm… First of all it’s not a religion, it’s a set of rules that guides us throughout our lives. We try to follow the traditions inherited from our dark past and to keep contact of Blood and Soil. We clearly understand that we are only temporary guests here and respect the Rule of Nature. We just use the energy of four elements.

14.In one interview you had talked about your interest in the writings of H.P Blavatsky, does your interest in the occult go deeper than that and if so tell us a little bit more about your interest in occultism?Yes, I have a great interest to the occult masterpieces of Helen Blavatsky. Moreover I admire the sense of purpose of this genius scientist and writer. She contributed a lot to the theosophical culture and was one of the most “close” to the Verity. The Verity that is hidden in the depth of the Nature and will sometimes unveil only to the chosen ones. But not nowadays, because our damn generation is unworthy of that, in my opinion. Our generation is growing up on Internet, Coca-Cola, McDonalds and porno videos. What kind of High Sciences and Ariosophy can we talk about now? Don’t confuse High Technologies and High Sciences… Spiritual traditions are almost lost now.

15.What are some of your non musical interests?
Travelling, sports, photography and literature.

16.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thank You for Your profound questions. Hope that this interview will help the audience to understand clearly the concept of our new album and people in Europe shall learn something new about the history of Belarus. Hail Belarus! Hail Kryuja! SUPPORT THE UNDERGROUND!

Sunday, March 29, 2015

Neverendinghate are a duo from Spain that plays a very raw mixture of black and thrash metal and this is a review of their 2014 demo "La Caida de los Idolos" which was released by Morbid Shrine Productions.

Dark avant garde ritualistic sounds starts off the demo along with some black metal screams a few seconds later which also takes the music into more of a raw blackened thrash metal that also uses a good amount of blast beats and you can also hear a decent amount of death metal influences in the bands musical style.

Throughout the recording there is a great mixture of slow, mid paced and fast parts and when solos and leads are utilized they are in an early 90's death metal direction and at times the riffs can also be very melodic and all of the songs stick to a very raw, heavy and old school extreme metal sound while they close the demo with an acoustic guitar outro.

Neverendinghate plays a very raw style of black metal that is very heavily thrash influenced and also brings in a touch of death metal to create their own sound, the production sound s very dark and raw while the lyrics are written in Spanish and cover misanthropic themes.

In my opinion Neverendinghate are a very great sounding raw mixture of black and thrash metal and if you are a fan of those musical genres, you should check out this demo. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Silenciando la Memoria" and "Esclavos". 8 out of 10.

Saturday, March 28, 2015

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
We are a Black Metal band from Volos,Greece.Our band consist of 2 members (Nick Sidiropoulos,Panagiotis Tsiglifis) We were formed on March 2015.

2.Recently you have released a demo, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?
The production is more "clear" from many Black Metal bands.We are inspired by the Scandinavian Scene of the 90's but we putt our own personal touch to the music.We didn't want to copy other bands so we tried hard and put all our effort and make our own sound.We even have Byzantine Vocals on 1 song....We want some variety in our music.

3.The band has been around since the beginning of 2015 and already have released a demo, do the band members put a great amount of time and effort into this musical project?
We may have been a new band but we have worked for many hours for our demo.In one month we put a great amount of effort and tried our best.Many hours of rehearsing.recording,mixing,mastering.At that point we would like to say thank you to "Fiende" who helped us out with the recordings of the demo.The production is by him and Isolert.

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
First we would like to say thank you to Jason Kasioptas for his lyrics.The lyrics are inspired by misanthropy and darkness.Just that.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Isolert'?
First off all we wrote our songs and the lyrics and then we were searching for a good name.Many names were in the list but we wanted to find something unique.We came accross Isolert which means Isolated in Norwegian.The inspiration comes from all of us as humans.We are people isolated in our own souls and we all hide our secrets..

6.Currently there are only 2 members in the band, are you planning on expanding the line up in the future or do you chose to remain a duo?
There are many great things on remaining a duo.When you are only two members in a band you can understand each other. Our cooperation is great with Panos and we just didn't want to add another member cause we didn't find someone willing to join the band and work as hard as we do.So i guess we will be only two members.But only time knows....

7.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
We are in search for a label but the good news is that Labels from Europe and American have shown interest in our demo and we have received some offers to release our demo on Cassette and CD and recently we came in contact with Depressive Illusions and they agreed to release the demo on cassette.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal?
So far the feedback has been great and we didnt expected it because we just uploaded our first songs and we are a band only for 1 Month.It's a good start i guess..

9.When can we expect a full length album and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
The next step for the band is a split album or even an EP. If everything will go according to the plan we will release our first full length album on Spring 2016.We already are working on songs for it.

10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
The main influence is Gorgoroth i think and you can hear it on our songs .But we also love Dissection, Darkthrone,Carpathian Forest, Burzum,Mayhem and almost everything from the Scandinavian Scene.
Personally i am a big fan of US Power Metal and these days i listen to the new Sacral Rage album which is FUCKIN AWESOME!Also the new Empire of the Moon album is awesome.

11.What are some of your non musical interests?
Just drinking beers and going hiking .. We are boring guys (hahaha).

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
We just wanted to say that the demo we released is dedicated to our brother Christoforos "Oliva" Ntinos
who passed away February 2015.

Isolert are a duo from Greece that plays a very raw, old school and Nordic influenced form of black metal and this is a review of their self released 2015 demo "Isolated Soul".

A very raw and dark sound starts off the demo along with some grim black metal screams and a small amount of melody and after awhile the music starts to speed up a bit and also bring in a decent amount of blast beats and the songs are very heavily rooted in the 90's and also bring in a great mixture of slow, mid paced and fast parts.

All of the musical instruments have a very powerful sound to them and the band also brings in a small amount of whispers and clean singing at times and the songs also bring in a good mixture of both Scandinavian and Greek black metal influences and also have a sound that would of went over very well 20 years ago and you can also hear a small amount of clean playing in certain sections of the recording and the last song also brings in a brief use of melodic guitar leads.

Isolert plays a style of black metal that is very grim, old school and raw and also has a very vintage second wave sound to them, the production sounds very dark and raw while the lyrics cover dark and misanthropic themes.

In my opinion Isolert are a very great sounding raw, old school and Nordic influenced black metal duo and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this demo. RECOMMENDED TRACK "Empty Memory (Hatred For Mankind)". 8 out of 10.

Skyforger are a band from Latvia that has been around since the 90's and plays a pagan form of black/folk metal and this is a review of their 2015 album "Senprusija" which will be released in April by Thunderforge Records.

A very dark and medieval sound starts off the album along with some clean singing pagan vocals and you can also hear some folk instruments in the background and after the intro the music starts adding in more of a heavier and raw black metal sound along with a decent amount of blast beats and high pitched screams.

You can hear a lot of melody and traditional metal influences in the bands musically sound and the vocals also use some rough of angry shouting type of singing and you can also hear a heavy dose of thrash in the bands musical style and the songs also bring in a great mixture of slow, mid paced and fast parts and the folk instruments also mix in with the heavy parts quite a bit throughout the recording.

When solos and leads are utilized they are in a more melodic metal direction and all of the musical instruments have a very powerful sound to them and some of the tracks also bring in the sounds of war from the middle ages and as the album progresses clean playing can be heard in certain sections of the recording and the pagan vocals and folk instruments that where present on the intro also make a return on some of the later tracks while one of the later songs also brings in a brief use of spoken word parts.

Skyforger creates an album that focuses more on a straight forward pagan metal sound this time around while also keeping their black and folk metal roots, the production sounds very professional while the lyrics are written in their native tongue and cover Prussian History and their roots as a Baltic people before the Germans conquered.

In my opinion Skyforger are a very great sounding mixture of pagan, black and folk metal and if you are a fan of those musical genres, you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Senprusija" "Herkus Monte" "Melnas Buras" and "Zem Lietuvas Karogiem". 8 out of 10.

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the musical project?

Nigredo were created in early 2013 by me (A.- guitars, bass, vocals) and Maelstrom (drums) in order to realize our own personal visions of black metal. In February 2015 our first mini album entitled “Facets Of Death” was released by Odium Records.

2.Recently you have released a mini album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?

At the time the tracks of the mini album were being composed my constant aim was to always achieve the perfect balance between the straightforward black metal riffing and the most sinister dissonances I could come up with. The final result is riff driven black metal with many diverse moments, from very thrashy to very atmospheric and everything in between. Maelstrom’s contribution to how the album sounds is huge since he has a very distinct drumming style, extremely hard hitting and a very wide arsenal of drum beats and fills, and he’s also playing an important role in shaping the structures of the tracks. I must also mention the contribution of 210 Studios (Berlin) whose mix and master highlights and brings to the foreground the large amount of information our music contains.

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

I’m the sole lyricist in the band and I take my personal approach to some, not so unusual in black metal, topics. As the title of the album implies, the idea and the aesthetics of death are very prevalent in Nigredo lyrics. The murderer archetype, Cain, the ritual of infants immolation and the concept of death as a return to a state where all potentials arise from are some of the subjects covered.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Nigredo'?

Nigredo refers to a process of the alchemical Magnum Opus that expresses putrefaction and decomposition. Saturn rules over Nigredo and from my point of view he corresponds to negativity, death and the principle of aggressive disintegration-destruction. The above concepts and thus the name complement the band’s musical and lyrical direction.

6.Currently there are only 2 members in the band, are you planning on expanding the line up in the future or do you chose to remain a duo?

Probably one more person will be added to the line up, for live shows at least.

7.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal?

So far, most people’s first impressions of our music are positive. It’s too early though to comment on the general feedback.

9.The mini album was released on Odium Records, are you happy with the support they have given you so far?

The release turned out really good looking and Odium Records is doing a good job with the promotion of the album considering it’s our debut release so yes, I’m satisfied with our collaboration so far

10.When can we expect a full length and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

We are already working on a lot of new material for our first full length album. Expect more aggressive, more dramatic, more dissonant and more straightforward music, we are pushing our style in every direction.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Pretty much everything we listen to can be considered an influence and we both listen to many different stuff. Drummer Maelstrom listens to a lot more hardcore punk and classic heavy metal than me, for example, while we find a lot of common ground in black and death metal. But if I had to name a few bands that really helped shape our style I would say probably Deathspell Omega and Mayhem.
The last few months I have been obsessed with Negative plane and affiliated acts (Funereal Presence, Occultation, Ominous Ressurection) and I have been listening to a lot of classic Greek black metal like early Rotting Christ, Varathron and Necromantia.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?Join the coven
https://www.facebook.com/NigredoGr
https://nigredogr.bandcamp.com
www.odiumrex.com

Thursday, March 26, 2015

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording of the new album?
Actually we just started the live activity in support of the new album, and we are planning more live dates.

2.You have a new album coming out in the end of March, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
It might sound obvious at this point, but we are very proud of how “The Origin of Fire” sounds, I think more complete and in a certain way more mature than the oldreleases. In the two previous releases “Septem” (2011) and “Imperivm” (2008) we noticed that some aspects of our songwriting were leaving a certain incomplete feeling while listening the songs for a while, like not withstanding completely the test of time. So, for this new release we worked more on the “melodic” aspect of each track, adding more guitar layers and creating more variations, which transformed our sounds in something wider and deeper.

3.This is the first album to be released in 4 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time frame?
We played many gigs and we faced our first line-up change since the foundation of the Band in 1998, changing a bass player and including the live session guitarist in the permanent line-up, so this took a few time to be properly settled.

4.Your lyrics cover a great amount of Occult topics, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in the Black Arts?
Black Flame have always been a Band with a deep and personal lyrical path. All our releases have been always enriched with lyrics inspired by our experiences and our philosophy, and “The Origin of Fire” is no exception in this. The new album is lyrically inspired by the cosmic creations which have been created by humans in order to search for a sort of divine self-elevation: the controversial relationship with Death celebrated through cursed cults forged in fire and blood. This thing could be seen as a direct metaphor of how we live and we conceive this Band : we summon Death and the destruction of all the demiurgic cosmic creations. We chant about instincts, we chant about lust, about fire, about ashes and destruction and our music in the altar upon which we sacrifice our human barriers so we can ride wild and unchained in the sonic realm we create.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Black Flame'?
The Black Flame is the primordial fire, the origin of the realm of the black shadows.

6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
We would always remember the mini-tour we made in Norway in late 2007, while supporting the “Conquering Purity” album. Norway has been always seen as a crucial land for Black Metal, and the bands coming from there have been widely praised and acclaimed, so for us it was a very important moment to bring our music in that land. The response from the audience was positively unexpected in all the gigs and it was a sort of a eye-opener for us, a sort of boost which gave us a big energy and confidence, which at that time resulted in the recording of “Imperivm”.

7.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?
Yes, we already have 6/7 gigs planned between Italy and Switzerland and more will come.

8.On the album you had done a cover of Kenneth Anger's "Lucifer Rising", what was the decision behind doing your own version of this song?
Kenneth Anger has always been a controversial figure, and many aspects behind the creation of the soundtrack for “Lucifer Rising” were and still are a mystery. Originally, Jimmy Page from Led Zeppelin was recruited for the soundtrack writing and it looks like that some of the parts were completed by Page at the Boleskine House, during his most intense period of involvement in Black Magic practices. However, it looks like that his tracks were never used, and the soundtrack was credited to Bobby Beausoleil, which was a Charles Manson associate and that is serving a lifetime sentence for homicide in prison. This Luciferian cocktail of Occult practices, controversy, drugs, is perfectly captured in the track “Lucifer Rising”, which features some guitar patterns which, in the original version, are unmistakably the touch of Jimmy Page…. even though Bobby Beausoleil was officially credit. Who knows the truth can’t and won’t speak now, and we decided to tribute all this.

9.Also on the new album you had PK of Abigor and Iscariah of Dead to This world quest on a couple of your songs, can you tell us a little bit more about their contributions to the recording?
They are both long time friends, since PK already wrote some music for Black Flame in 2004/5. His contribution in “My Temple of Flesh” and “On the Trail of the Serpent” is exactly a tribute to the ten years of the first collaboration.
I played drums in the Norwegian band Dead To This World from 2008 to 2015, so it was very easy and natural to invite Iscariah for some vocals in the track “On the Trail of the Serpent”. They both had a clear vision of their ideas and the way to make them working in our style, I’m very pleased about the final outcome.

10.Over the years how has the feedback been to your music by fans of both black and death metal?
To be honest, during the years we’ve been more interested to get people attracted to us and develop our personal style, trying to avoid sonic speculations in order to gain more audience.

11.What is going on with some of the other musical projects or bands these days that some of the band members are a part off?
I’m currently drumming for the cult band Opera IX and for Janvs, while Tiorad is playing guitars for Adversam and our bass player Gnosis is the mainman of Mystical Fullmoon.
All this bands are active and on fire with new albums out or in the process of being released.

12.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We’re not interested in ambitious dreams of fame, I see this band as a constant and sonic expression of our personal paths, so until we will be clear and focused enough to materialize our visions in music, this Band will exist.

13.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
We listened to so many music that it is really impossible for me to point out at something, and when we write new music we have no other reference but ourselves.

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thank you for this space and for the interest. Dare yourselves to discover what is “The Origin of Fire” ! Serpens Vigil Est !

1.Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?

We're rehearsing some pieces that will be recorded into the next months for a three-way split album with italian hordes Infamous and Solitvdo. Then I've started to work on the next full-length which will be a challenging opus for Warnungstraum, surely its most laboured release.

2.In December you had released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

I think that is hard to describe "Mirror Waters" precisely. It's music that make me think to a journey between surreal landscapes, supernatural visions, painful emotions, melancholy and moments of deep calm and contemplation. The black metal songs are very much doomish like our first album, but this time I used the keys together with the guitars so in many moments the sound is more majestic and near to some old symphonic black metal bands like early Gehenna, or early Dimmu Borgir. The sound of our previous albums was raw and morbid, the structures where simple and minimalistic, and the music was a direct expression of negativity and pain. The latest album is a step ahead of all this, we take the direction of a more mature, narrative approach to extreme music.

3.According to the fb page you label your music as 'Introspective Visionaire Black metal', can you tell us a little bit more about this term?

I try with Warnungstraum to express some of my deepest thoughts, visions, pleasant and unpleasant obessions. Black metal music is usually associated with the devilish, the sinister, the horrid, the tragic.. I think that the first place where you could find all these elements is into yourself, during your moments of paranoid and your introspections, and I think it's a really visionaire experience to face your own dark thoughts, because you can't define them "clearly", you can't put them into an organized structure or ideology, the force of fantasy is bigger than every limit you could impose to your thoughts. They are like an ever-changing fluid, made by images that tremble in a water mirror. So I could say that my music is dealing with that kind of introspective and visionaire experience.

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?

This time I explored two topics: the first is that of some oriental views about post-mortem experience and reincarnation, in fact "Antarabhava" is a term that indicates the intermediate state between one existence and another. I don't believe in such views but I like the idea of a dreadful journey for the coscience of a dying individual, starting from the separation with the body and ending in a painful re-birth into a new carnal body. Is something like a "catharian", pessimistic vision of earthly life with which I don't agree, but anyway I found the topic much suggestive for a black metal piece. The second topic was taken by the myth of Narkissos, that for me is a tale with great symbolic, spiritual and psychological meanings. In the whole of my life I was (and still I am) obsessed by the reflection of myself into my mind; sometimes I'm really fascinated by this alter-ego while in some other moments I feel it like my biggest enemy, a sort of illusion that enslaves me and prevent myself from becoming what I really am, inducing me to pursue false ideals. I tried to express this deep level of signification with the lyrics.

5.On the album cover you quoted Ovid, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this author?

Ovid is the latin source I used for the Narkissos topic. His opus "Metamorphosys" is one of the biggest source for greek-roman mythology, religion and spirituality of the imperial age. I'm always been very much into this things, is like "daily bread" for me. The quote into the album cover is a reference to the symbolical meaning of the myth.

6.Has the band done any any live shows or has this been strictly a studio project so far?

Warnungstraum is strictly a studio project. Never say no, but I think that it will remain as this.

7.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal?

The distribution of our works was always very much underground and limited to the circuit of small black metal labels, with promotion near to the zero. I received very few feedback, but maybe the people who appreciate and know Warnungstraum's music is more than I could imagine.

8.What is going on with some of the other musical projects or bands these days that some of the band members are a part off?

The new album of Obscure Devotion is ready to be released and I hope that into the next months it will be out for a good label. It's really a masterpiece of black metal art, the song writing is on a very high level and inspiration was deep and intense. I'm waiting also for the release of the new Aryan Art album of my friend Alexander Ivanov, in which I played all the guitars and acoustics part. Then from my side I'm working on the first full-length of Flamen, my extreme epic metal project.

9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

I could anticipate that the next Warnungstraum full-length will be a very rich work, with a strong narrative and conceptual vein, with various musical elements that will go from the melodic black to the death doom, passing through atmospheric moments, ambient, symphonic neoclassical parts. I will try to gather all the past experience into one musical opus dealing with a specific theme, trying to give to the music and to the lyrics a precise structure like in a progressive concept-album. The theme will be obviously based on my own interior experience, but this time I will deal with a specific spiritual/psychological topic.

10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

The influence for our newer music is coming maybe from bands like italian Tronus Abyss, early norwegian melodic bands like Gehenna, Limbonic Art, first Dimmu Borgir, some classic doom like Katatonia, plus some ambient and psychedelic music like Tangerine Dream, Coil, Popol Vuh. I always listen to tons of music of various kind so is something difficult to quote the influences.. nowadays I'm listening very much classical music like that of Arrigo Boito, Giuseppe Verdi, Igor Stravinsky, plus some old rare heavy metal classics and the latest Laibach works. Extreme metal near to zero.

11.Does Paganism or Occultism play any role in your music?

In past times I was very interested into such things, but into the last years I've changed my mind and now I could say that I don't see paganism or occultism as good things. I will always be interested in true spirituality, and my own inner research will always go on, but I think that some things are a great obstacle for a real spiritual growth. Actually Paganism is a false tradition: is only an ideology, a mask for a materialistic vision of life and if you analyse the neo-pagan visions and ideas you will find only a different way of expression of such concepts that are derivated by the modern science that is materialistic, the modern philosophy that is nihilistic and the modern anthropology-sociology that are a sum of the previous disciplines. It has nothing to do with the true ancient spiritual Traditions. Occultism is much more dangerous: usually when you go into occultism you're driven by the desires of your ego, by a long list of false ideals that are covering your lowest impulses, that have nothing to do with your true personality and self, because they are only a transitory "reflection" of your coscience into the organic, biological plane. So it's obvious that your individual ego, that is a transitory illusion, will never be able to dominate the invisible forces and the errant psychic entities that are active on the intermediate level which is the operative field of occultism. Occultism promises powers and exaltation to the ego, and liberation from an earthly life that one can't accept because it seems without sense. There is no benefit for me into all of this.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?

When I'm not operating with music usually I read and study a certain kind of books, or I do some manual labour or sportive activities that helps me to be not too much "intellectual" and philosopher, that is not a good thing... especially for my body! I like also to walk in natural places, exploring mountain paths and woods.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

To all black metal people: don't lie down on your illusions. Extreme music means independence, autarchy. Reject the cliches and the ideological dogmas if you want to fight really against this world. If not, be calm and patient, the end will come anyway. All the best!

Macabre Omen are a band originally from Greece but now resides in the United Kingdom and plays an epic form of pagan/black metal and this is a review of their 2015 album "Gods Of War - At War" which was released in 2015 by Van Records.

Water, thunder and rain sounds start off the album along with some spoken word parts and melodic pagan chanting a few seconds later which also leads up to a very heavy musical direction along with some guitar solos and leads that are very epic and melodic and are also a very huge part of most of the songs.

When vocals are added onto the recording they are very deep and grim sounding black metal screams that can get very high pitched and times while the melodies gives the music a 90's Hellenic black metal feeling and the music also has a very raw feeling at times along with a great mixture of slow, mid paced and fast parts.

A good portion of the tracks are very long and epic in length and clean singing vocals can be hard in certain sections of the recording and they also give the music more of an epic vibe when they are utilized and some of the songs also bring in small amounts of acoustic guitars at times and as the album progresses folk instruments are brought onto some of the tracks giving the music more of a medieval feeling while some of the heavier parts also use a small amount of deep and demonic growls

Macabre Omen plays a style of pagan/black metal that is very epic, raw, heavy and diverse in the Greek tradition of the 90's but done with more of an up to date feeling, the production sounds very powerful while the lyrics cover war, death, Hellenic Pride, Rhodian antiquity and lore.

In my opinion Macabre Omen are a very great sounding epic pagan/black metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "I See The Sea" "Man Of 300 Voices" and "Rhodian Pride, Lindian Might". 8/5 out of 10.

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Nocturnal Nightmare a duo from Sweden that plays a very depressive form of black metal and this is a review of their self released 2015 ep "Alt Har Sitt Slut".

Clean guitars start off the ep and after a minute the music gets heavier and speeds up as well as going into a raw black metal direction which also introduces depressive high pitched screams to the recording and both of the tracks bring in a great mixture of slow, mid paced and fast parts as well as having clean parts make their return at times.

Whispers can be heard in certain sections of the recording and also add more of a suicidal atmosphere to the bands musical style and the music at time s can be a bit avant garde while the main focus remains more on a depressive black metal style and on the second tracks melodies are added into the music along with some guitar leads.

Nocturnal Nightmare continue the depressive black metal sound of previous recordings while also making both of their songs very diverse, the production sounds very dark and raw while the lyrics are written in a mixture of English and Swedish and cover suicide, self harm and depression.

In my opinion this is another great sounding ep from Nocturnal Nightmare and if you are a fan of depressive black metal, you should check out this ep. RECOMMENDED TRACK "Allt Har Sitt Slut". 8 out of 10.

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
We are Jarnvidr, a "black metal" constellation located in Linköping, Sweden. Many people think that we are a one man project, which is totally wrong. We are a band, from the beginning to the very end. The line up and all participants in the band have always been a secret, until our latest release Landzplågor came out. I decided to include all of them in the booklet, only for this time.

2.How would you describe your musical sound?
Our way of playing may be typical "black metal", but we are not looking at other bands, taking inspiration or just simply stealing. What you can hear on the recordings of Jarnvidr are creations directly from our minds, or sometimes through. Basically we want the listener to feel the pure and cold hate straight from our nordic hearts, the old forgotten folkish melodies and the total madness from the deepest chambers of a human mind.

3.Recently you said you where re-recording your new album, what was the decision behind the move?
We fucked it up. Minor errors are no big deals for us, but you just can't fail to play correct on every fucking part/riff. But sometimes you fail, and the only thing to do is to learn by your mistakes and come back more stronger than ever, hopefully. Most of the errors were rythmic and not melodic. I consider Jarnvidr to be a 65% rythmic and 35% melodic, so i had to tell the boys that we must re-record this shit, because our music i rythm based, and the mistakes can be heard too easily then.

4.The band has been around since 2006 but waited until 2010 to release any music, can you tell us a little bit more about the first 4 years?
Jarnvidr was formed in 2009, and we began to rehearse and make songs at that time. So the time between 2006-2009 is a pre-Jarnvidr period when i was searching for the right sound, and i found it almost immediately.

5.From 2012 to 2014, the band was on hiatus, what was the cause of the split and also the decision to reform?
We tried to record an album in the beginning of 2012, but everything failed completley. After that i lost all my interest in black metal and i even doubt that we could come back and record another album. At the same time i started interest myself for other activites. What kind of activities and interests should not be mentioned here due to several reasons.

6.Your lyrics cover Swedish History and Folklore, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these subjects?
The dark history of Sweden, and northern Europe as well, are big inspiring sources for me. Half of Jarnvidr is about the music, and the second part is the cultural treasure from sweden, like poems, local tales, paintings and the nature itself is a big inspiration in our music. .Several songs of Jarnvidr are titled in the same style as artists names their paintings, because i want the songs to be like a painting, but instead you hear it and imagine and building up a landscape inside your head with the help of evil and dark sounding tunes. Even christianity and churches can be inspiriting, especially the old versions of bibles and the language within them.

7.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Jarnvidr'?
All i can say is that the name sounds good and looks good in letters, and also that Jarnvidr symbols our northern heritage Jarnvidr, Iron woods in english or Järnskogen in swedish, is a place in the Norse mythology where evil beings dwell, very short explained.
Actually we don't have many songs about the Norse mythology, just a handful. The album/compilation Ostrogothia have four tracks related to that subject if i'm not wrong. So Ostrogothia is our recording which can be related to the "viking"-era and the myths and legends of that time

8.Has the band done any live shows or has this been strictly a studio project so far?
We have discussed to play live for years now, we are just waiting for the right opportunity. For exemple, we certainly will not play with any random metalcoregayband, and not at a disgusting muslim owned club/bar. Drunken retards are another problem..The gig will probably anyway end up like a GG Allin show with fist fights or similar actions So therefore the whole concert must be VERY carefully planned. If some band or person think that they have the same visions as me/Jarnvidr, please contact us and we can discuss how to organize a live appearance.

9.On the album you added some military march samples, can you tell us a little bit more about the piece that you had used?
. It's an old Germanic military march from like 1918 i think. The whole (long) title can be found inside the booklet of our latest release Landzplågor. We just like to include Germany related things in our songs because it was a great country in many ways. On every album we use something that is releated to Germany in any way, mostly titles, but this time we used a military march. For exemple we put the word "Einsatzkommando" in from of Jarnvidr sometimes. It is not connected to the national socialistic Germany, we just like the strong and elitist feeling in the word.

10.The new album was released through both Ostrogothia Productions and Fallen Temple, can you tell us a little bit more about these labels?
. Ostrogothia Productions is a closely related label to Jarnvidr, and i (the former of Jarnvidr), is somehow involved. The label started in 2010 in order to release Jarnvidr related recordings, so we could do everything by ourselves and avoid all the bureacratic bullshit that often comes when you are dealing with new and unknown labels. Fallen Temple is a magnificent label from Poland. A very great guy, Dawit, runs it and he is very professional to co-operate with! We will contintue to work with him when our new full-lenght is done. He did a good job with the Landzplågor release and we are totally satisfied. I have tried to make deals with many many labels through these five years, but none of them have been as great as Fallen Temple. Most of the labels out there are run by retarded cocksuckers (you all know who you are!).

11.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal?
In fact, we are a very small band, so it is hard to be seen and heard when there are so many other bands out there. Still we have managed to get fans all over the world, and we appreciate when they are writing to us and give us positive feedback, that is really inspiring and makes me want to continue with the music. Of course, alot of negative and neutral feedback have also come to our attention. Some mongoloids claim that we "sound like all bands did on the 90s" and "Jarnvidr isn't making something new". I find it very funny because if you want to hear REAL black metal, should'n it be a great thing if this new band sounded like the old masters of black metal? For exemple; I don't buy a rockabilly record and then complain about it is sounding like the 50's. The world is full of retards.

I can with pleasure say: if you are looking for some new, strange, experimental avant garde black metal that has been recorded with 100 microphones and mixed with the latest computer programs and so on, then you SHOULD NOT buy a Jarnvidr record, because we will never play that kind of plastic, digital and flat music you call "black metal".

12.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
Last month we decided that this recording we are making now, called Närwarelse, should be our last full-lenght. Instead we will do some other formats, like splits and vinyls. I find it more interesting to meet new intelligent people with good music writing skills than to sit on my own and make 10 songs with the same musical style and sound landscape. In my opinion a split between two unknown and small bands may sound more "complete" and better than a regular full-lenght in 50 minutes from a established black metal band. Musically we will not change a single bit. We have found our musical formula, so why take away something we are satisfied with?

By now people would know what they are going to get when they buy (or download) a new Jarnvidr record. That means: no trends, no overproduced digital plastic shit, no political correctness, just some real black arts from Ostrogothia!

13.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
I really don't feel like talking about what i'm listening too, but i appreciates almost every sort of music. Like now i'm listening to Eddie Meduza and his "radio program" Radio Ronka.

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Within a couple of months some releases should be out. A home site with shop will be launched with the address "ostrogothiaproductions.se", this will make it a little bit more easy to get our stuff instead of sending mail back and forward with instrucitions etc. We are a small band with minimal amouts of cash to spend on the band, therefore are we depending on your support. If you like a song or an album with Jarnvidr, make sure to buy it. Your money will go straight back into the music business so we can produce more recording and merchandise. We are also trying to keep the prices as low as possible, it means that we are not making any profit at all, or just a very small

Keep your eyes open for our NEW and LAST full-lenght album with the title NÄRWARELSE!!! Out soon on FALLEN TEMPLE!!!
Meanwhile you can still buy our latest album LANDZPLÅGOR. Send an e-mail to:fallentemple@gmail.com OR ostrogothia.productions@gmail.com.

News and other updates can be found on our facebook page "Jarnvidr Official".
FUCK OFF!!

1.Can you give us an update on what is going on with the musical project these days?
1.Aäspraphäärsth: We haven’t got a lot of news, we’re recording our music, we’re working on the lyrics and deriving inspiration from original source. There are several options to record a split with some bands from CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) and Europe, and then we’ll publish a full-length album.
Darkus: We live in different cities so it makes some troubles and work doesn’t go fast. But there are many ideas which we should realize so just wait for it.

2.In January you had released an ep, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?
2.Aäspraphäärsth: In my opinion the musical sound is raw and solid in this ep. There are no ideas to do the genre with trend insertions and upstart sound. Music is an expression of hatred, so it’s a powerful engine and a goal to follow this way.
Darkus: It’s pure evil and hate! This music is a shotgun charged with six killing bullets to the face of the stupid society infected by christianity. In my opinion raw sound combines perfectly with voice of Aäspraphäärsth and makesthe atmosphere of total destruction. So just receive this piece of hatred of us.

3.Your lyrics cover anti christian topics, can you tell us a little bit more about your hatred for this religion?
3. Aäspraphäärsth: The Christian religion is extremely scarce, especially Orthodoxy. Catholicism is faintly perceptible on general ideas. Orthodoxy is completely built on the absurd. Even a pair of these books, that are called Bibles, was created incorrectly and foolishly. They contain a lot of things that contradict themselves. Christians are stubborn and narrow-minded persons, who differ for their scrupulous stupidity and primitivism. If I were not connected with Black Metal, I would still hate Christianity.
Darkus: Christianity is a malignant tumor on the body of humanity. It damages a brain and turns people into sheep. Our land infested with catholicism, Russian orthodoxy, doctrine of the baptists and many other sorts of this shit. All of them build their churches on my land and spread the plague with words: “Do you want to speak about our lord jesuschrist?” They are parasites that devour our roots and suck our life-forces. I can describe a typical pope in our country: it’s a very fat man with a monstrous belly and huge gold cross on it. He has a very expensive car and good house but asks to bring him more money “in the name of god.” And christians obey him absolutely. I have no pity or mercy to them. I see the eyes of the christians – the eyes of brainless slaves and victims. So slaves shall serve. But I walk another way. Jedem das seine!

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Revetreth'?
4. Aäspraphäärsth: The name of our project completely defines us. We didn’t find the title in different books of spells, in the Harry Potter books or in the books of Tolkien… Our name is a set of certain letters, which represents only us, our creativity, our ideas and hatred.

5.Currently there are only 2 members in the band, are you planning on expanding the line up in the future, or do you chose to remain a duo?
5.Aäspraphäärsth: Expend line up is type of extra problems. As a practice shows, work in full line up is slower. There are certainly some ideological guys with whom we’d be happy to have a session in support of a live performance, but no more. Not everyone can work with Darkus. You have to be ideological and totally interested to work with him. I’m glad that we had worked with him and we like what we do.
Darkus: I think it’s very important to find a person with who you can be on the same wave. It’s the most important thing when you create a band. So we did it. Aäspraphäärsth andme possessed by similar ideas, our black flame of hatred is strong enough to create the music so I don’t see any necessityto expand the line-up.

6.On the ep you had done a cover of Mayhem's "Chainsaw Gutsfuck', what was the decision behind doing your own version of this song?
6. Aäspraphäärsth:I like the sound of earlier Black Metal. Therearemany great bands, who tried and created a good music. We chose the earlier Mayhem because there is a lot of anger and aggression. Brief songs that are filled with hatred are what motivates me.

7.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal?
7.Aäspraphäärsth:It is too early to talk about the worldwide level… This is not an arms race.I will say one thing: all the resources, that have published us in your resources, gave good estimates. There are some people whose estimate is important for me. I haven’t noticed dissatisfied persons, many people tasted this black cake.
Darkus: In one interview Revetreth were compared with the early works of Bathory… That’s fuckin’ great!!!

8.What is going on with the other 2 musical projects these days that one of the band members is a part of?
8 . Darkus: My other 2 projects are Imšar (black metal) and Archalaxis (thrash metal). Archalaxis played last live show in 2012 and the band is in eternal sleep from those days. As for Imšar I've written a lot of material since debut full-length was realized. Now I'm recording the second full-length and it seems that it will be more pagan in sound but keep the presence of Swamp Spirits.

9.With the project 'Imsfar', the lyrics cover a lot of pagan topics, can you tell us a little bit more about your views on Paganism?
9 . Darkus: Nowadays there are a lot of different “pagan” cults in our region. They used to gather in the nearest forest for making “idols”, drinking alcohol and having sex. I should to say that I hate them not less than christians. Actually I don’t like any form of gathering people ‘cause it reminds me a herd. I walk my path alone in silence face to face with Nature, mighty and powerful, feel its borderless strength and recover my own forces, receive an inspiration – this is my own Heathendom.

10.When can we expect a full length album and also where do you see this band heading into musically during the future?
10. Aäspraphäärsth: Maybe we’ll publish a full-length album the next year. I think so. For the present we’ve got a good way and there are no obstacles. We don’t think to stop, so everything is still ahead, with this right direction.
Darkus: We are working on the material of forthcoming full-length and I can tell exactly – we stay evil, raw and blasphemic.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
11. Aäspraphäärsth: I listen to earlier Black, Death, a bit of old and angry Thrash Metal. I have no time or desire to be up on the deformation of these genres, and the old no one will take.It can be listened to for ages. Old and angry things are very hard to find even in digital formats. I have a very good bands and projects that make music in the right direction.
Darkus: All influences were correctly marked in different reviews in our material – old-school black metal bands from 80’s and early 90's. It was a great epoch of a true and honest music. When I’m listening to something new it’s important for me that the music will be honest and full with some kind of energy. And if the band simply tries to show how many notes they can execute in one second – it’s not for me.

12.How would you describe your views on Satanism?
12.Aäspraphäärsth:I don’t refer myself to Satanism. There are few mentions of this subject in our lyrics. Paganism is closer to me,it has a powerful energy and a lot of logical explanations. Furthermore Paganism denies Christianity, absurd believes and hatred of all vile and false.
Darkus: I’m a Heathen and support Satanism as a reaction against christianity. Christianity strictly divides Good and Evil. But there is no Light without Darkness, there is no Good without Evil. What is Evil at all? Some bad things could turn into good ones, poison could be a medicine in some cases and in other cases medicine could turn into poison. Things have different sides and it could be more than only two. And it’s very important for me to look at things from different points behind all imposed values. This is the real freedom.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
13. Aäspraphäärsth: I’d like to thank you for your cooperation and wish everyone to stay on the right path, and not to turn,even if there are difficulties. The ideas are above all.
Darkus: Thanks for the interesting questions! Keep your Roots!

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

This is a review of a 3 way split album between Germany's Nebel Uber Den Urnenfeldern, Italy's Chiral and Chile's Eternal Spell called "Sed Auis" and will be released in April by SixSixSix Music and we will start off the review with Nebel Uber Den Urnenfeldern a solo project that plays an atmospheric form of black metal.

His side of the split starts off with firewood burning and acoustic guitars which also return later on in some parts of the recording along with some tribal beats and synths a few seconds alter which also leads up to a more heavier black metal direction that also uses a great amount of melodic guitar leads and when vocals are added into the music they are high pitched screams that also have a depressive tone to them at times.

Both of his tracks are very long and epic in length and also mix in progressive structures in with a more raw and atmospheric black metal sound and the acoustic guitars also mix in with the heavier parts at times and the songs also stick to either a slow or mid paced direction, the production sounds very heavy and raw while the lyrics are written in German and cover nature, loneliness, darkness and death.

In my opinion Nebel Uber Den Urnenfeldern are a very great sounding atmospheric black metal project and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out his side of the split. RECOMMENDED TRACK "Ein Riss im ewigen Krois".

Next up is Eternal Spell a solo project from Chile that plays a mixture of black, speed metal and punk.

His side of the split starts off with a very old school first wave influenced black metal sound where you can also hear all of the musical instruments that are present on his side of the recording along with some spoken word vocals a few seconds later which also add in a good amount of aggression.

You can hear a lot of elements of punk and speed metal in his musical style and the songs have an 80's feeling to do them but done in a more modern fashion and the solos and leads sound like they where recorded 35 years ago and the second track also continues the same tradition while you can hear a little bit of the second wave sound, the production sounds very raw and old school while the lyrics cover Satanism, Evil, Nature and Darkness.

In my opinion Eternal Spell are a very great sounding mixture of black, speed metal and punk and if you are a fan of those musical genres, you should check out his side of the split. RECOMMENDED TRACK "Forces Oc Occult".

Closing the compilation is Chiral a solo project that has been featured before in this zine and plays a progressive and raw style of black metal.

His side of the split starts off with a very style of black metal and a few seconds later atmospheric sounds are added onto the recording and once the music speeds up blast beats and high pitched screams start becoming a huge part of the songs and the vocals also get very deep at times.

You can hear a great mixture of slow, mid paced and fast parts throughout both of his songs and at times a small amount of acoustic guitars and nature sounds can be heard and the riffs and solos also use a great amount of melody and the second track is very long and epic in length, the production sounds very dark and raw while the lyrics are written in Italian and cover introspection, nature, solitude, pain and love.

In my opinion this is another great sounding recording from Chiral and if you are a fan of raw, atmospheric and progressive black metal, you should check out his side of the split. RECOMMENDED TRACK "Queste Voci Ch Eclissano La Luce I'.

In conclusion I feel this is a very great sounding split and if you are a fan of a variety of many different black metal styles, you should check out this split. 8 out of 10.

Void Paradigm are a band from France that plays a musical style that they call 'hypnotic dodecatonic black metal' and this is a review of their 2015 album 'Earth's Disease" which will be released in May by Apathia Records.

Distorted sounding drones start off the album before adding in melodic guitar leads and a few seconds later angry black metal screams start to become a huge part of the recording and all of the musical instruments have a very powerful sound to them and the guitar riffs also use a great amount of melody.

Most of the tracks are very long and epic in length and you can also hear some avant garde elements in both the solos and riffs at times and there are also times where the music speeds up a bit and blast beats can be heard in certain sections of the recording and the songs also bring in a progressive style of black metal at times.

Growls can be heard on some of the tracks while some of the fast parts bring in more of a raw black metal feeling and some of the other songs also bring back noises and add in small amounts of harsh noises and clean playing which also gives the album more of an experimental feeling before making a return back to a heavier direction and the songs also start bringing in a great mixture of slow, mid paced and fast parts and one of the tracks also brings in a brief use of violins while another song uses spoken word parts.

Void Paradigm creates a style of black metal that is very original and progressive sounding and also display a great amount of talent and skill as musicians, the production sounds very professional while the lyrics cover universe, void, emptiness and philosophy.

In my opinion Void Paradigm are a very great sounding progressive black metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this recording. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Revenge" and "From the East To The Skies". 8 out of 10.

Monday, March 23, 2015

Crom Dubh are a band from the United Kingdom that plays a raw and melodic from of black metal with elements of folk music and post rock and this is a review of their 2015 album "Heimweh" which was released by Van Records.

A very distorted sounding guitar drone starts off the album and after the intro the music starts going for more of a raw style of black metal along with some blast beats and grim yet high pitched screams and you can also hear a decent amount of melody in the bands musical style and the music also uses a decent mixture of slow, mid paced and fast parts.

Some of the tracks are very long and epic in length and you can also hear some post and cascadian black metal influences in the bands musical style and the music can also be very atmospheric at times and when solos and leads are utilized they are very dark and melodic sounding and their is also a brief instrumental that also adds in traces of folk music before the album makes its return to a heavier direction on the following tracks.

All of the musical instruments on the recording have a very powerful sound to them and a couple of the songs also brings in a brief use of deep growls and on one of the later tracks clean playing is brought onto the recording briefly and they add more of a pagan atmosphere to the bands musical style and when the music goes back to being heavier you can hear a bit of mid 90's viking metal in the bands musical style and they also bring in another atmospheric instrumental before closing the album with a heavier track.

Crom Dubh plays a style of black metal that can be very raw and melodic at times but also adds in a touch of folk and post rock to create a sound of their own, the production sounds very raw yet heavy at the same time while the lyrics run parallel to Hesiod's five ages of man.

In my opinion Crom Dubh are a very great sounding raw and melodic, modern black metal band and if you are a fan of this musical genre, you should check out this album. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Cutting Teeth II" "Kings II' "Heimweh" and "Sailing To Byzantium". 8 out of 10.

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

Bureviy is Ukrainian heathen black metal band from Lviv.

2.So far you have released a demo and a full length, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on both of the recordings and also how do they differ from each other?

The demo and album sound differ dramatically. Demo is a first step in recording, I suppose. Alongside with the sound also stands stylistic manner, which is more determining IMHO. It’s been a while for Bureviy to decide on the music tone of our own. Turning on demo the one could hear extremely raw sound which varies from folk with authentic instruments to harsh and severe stream of metal. A full length shows more comprehension of what we mean to say by means of our creation.

3.The band has been around since 2007 but waited until 2013 to release any material, can you tell us a little bit more about the first 6 years?

None of the band members is a prof. musician, so, I can say that we’ve been gaining experience. We all approached musical instruments at the time we gathered in a band.

4.Your lyrics cover a good amount of pagan and heathen topics, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in Paganism?

It would be aright to say - Paganism is our Weltanschauung, cosmovision. If one has any connection to art, one expresses his inner world through it.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Bureviy'?

Bureviy is the Ukrainian word for storm, blast, blizzard. The idea of this particular name for our band appeared spontaneously while listening to some old-school raw black metal. This word came in one of songs, I guess, and the guys supported me, that this is a proper name for us.

6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

We shared stage with famous Ukrainian black metal bands in different gigs, but I can’t say there were too many of them. It was a pleasure for us. I think, our performance can be described and evaluated only by public. J Personally I try to do my best to bring maximum expression. This is a part of black metal to me.

7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

At the moment such plans do not seem to be on the front burner.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of pagan and black metal?

Time shall tell.

9.Are any of the band members also involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?

Yes, Raven (guitarist) used to have somewhat a hardcore band, and Jotuhammer (drummer) participates in Kroda, 1914 and some other projects on session basis.

10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

Music is inspiration. You never know, hehe, but I guess it shall be black metal.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Mainly each of us was influenced by Norwegian BM scene and the Ukrainian one represented by Khors, Drudkh, Ygg etc. Besides black metal we listen to folk music, ambient, DSBM, hardcore, post metal. The one should never be bound down in anything.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?

Music, being a main interest in life, is integrated in everything more or less. Sports, travelling are worth time as well.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thank you for the interview. Best metal and good luck!